Elements

How to Effectively Market to the Growing US Hispanic Market

The US Hispanic population is the fastest-growing ethnic segment in the country, with an expected growth of 167% between 2010 and 2050. If you haven't begun doubling your efforts to reach Hispanic customers through online marketing, now is the time to start.

And, just as when targeting any niche market, you should follow some basic guidelines—including the following—to effectively market to Spanish-speaking customers.

Focus on a local campaign

Traditionally, Hispanic communities are tightknit and family-led. However, because the term "Hispanic" encompasses a broad range of nationalities, attempting to lump them all together can be problematic. Hispanic communities are not homogenous.

Hyper-local strategies allow you to address the different needs of those communities, which can vary by ethnicity, religion, region, and age.

For example, the Arizona Diamondbacks baseball team recently unveiled a marketing campaign with the tagline "Somos Hispanos. Somos D-backs." The team focused on Hispanic communities in areas with close ties to the baseball team rather than shifting efforts more broadly. To reach different cultures, the campaign relied on players with backgrounds similar to the intended audiences, including Cuban Yasmany Thomas and Venezuelan David Peralta.

Bring your 'A' game

Some companies believe that simply translating an ad or website from English to Spanish counts as effective marketing. You need to go further. If you're going to market to Hispanic communities, you must put effort into outlining and implementing a full-scale, in-depth plan. Some companies go so far as to create a separate marketing unit for each group they want to target.